Books 2022

A good friend asked me about books that I have been reading.  That caused me to look up a representative sample of the books that I have read/re-read in 2022 - more or less in that time frame.  These are books that I read from cover to cover, not including those that I have only flipped through, or read only a small part.  I probably missed some, but hopefully not too many.  But there are also many that I left out for various reasons.  

Most of the books I read are written in English, but there are also some that are in Chinese.  After so many years of reading in English, I feel I still read faster in Chinese, perhaps because it is my first language?  There are books on China/Hong Kong - culture, history, current events.  What is happening in Hong Kong/China these days?  What are the historical/cultural factors behind them?  What is going to happen now, given what we know? 

I enjoy reading about science, technology, justice (or the lack of it), fish, history, economics, human behaviour, faith, …

The main theme lately, however, is centred around the brain.  I want to know how we think, feel, dream, remember, make mistakes, decide. Generally I prefer books written by reputable scholars, backed by serious research.  There has been tremendous advances in understanding the brain - in neural science, computer science, psychology, philosophy, behavioural economics, …  What has scientists discovered about our consciousness?  What is it and how does it work?  Can people create it?  

Everything is anchored by my faith.  Is consciousness the same as our soul? If not, how are they related?  What is life really about?  How then should I live?  My reading is always driven by the desire to know.